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Today, the House of Representatives passed the Paycheck Fairness Act to give women the tools they need to ensure they earn equal pay for equal work. Dingell is an original cosponsor of the legislation that strengthens and closes loopholes in the Equal Pay Act by holding employers accountable for discriminatory practices, ending the practice of pay secrecy, easing workers’ ability to individually or jointly challenge pay discrimination, and strengthening the available remedies for wronged employees.

“Wage fairness is not only a women’s issue, it’s a family and economic issue. Congress took a major step toward empowering women in the workplace and raising household incomes by passing the Paycheck Fairness Act,” said Dingell. “If you do the same work, you should earn the same wage – it’s as simple as that. Equal pay for equal work. The Paycheck Fairness Act gives women and employers the tools they need to end gender wage discrimination. Now it is time for the Senate do the right thing and pass this commonsense bill that helps women succeed, supports working families, and puts an end to workplace discrimination.”

More than five decades after the passage of the Equal Pay Act of 1963, Michigan women still only earn 78 cents for every dollar earned by their male counterparts. The national average is 80 centers for every dollar. The gap is even wider for women of color, with African-American women making 63 cents on the dollar, and Hispanic women making just 53 cents for every dollar earned by a man.

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